The present disclosure relates to a drive unit of a hybrid vehicle.
Japanese Laid-open Patent Application No. 2015-077846 describes a drive unit of a hybrid vehicle that can cause a differential mechanism to operate as a speed-up gear, by fixing (locking) the ring gear of the differential mechanism by a selectable one-way clutch, at the time of transmitting a power output from an engine to drive wheels.
The selectable one-way clutch described above includes a plurality of struts (engagement pieces). Therefore, when the selectable one-way clutch locks the ring gear, if the struts engage unequally, a radial load is generated in the selectable one-way clutch.
In the configuration described in Japanese Laid-open Patent Application No. 2015-077846, a ring gear flange that rotates integrally with the ring gear is supported by the carrier. Therefore, the radial load generated in the selectable one-way clutch acts on the carrier via the ring gear flange, thereby causing a so-called “misalignment”, in which a rotation center of the carrier deviates from its desired position. Accordingly, noise and vibration of the differential mechanism may become worse.